Factsheets - Sheep & BeefThe following fact sheets have been prepared by Anexa FVC Veterinarians as a guide to topics of interest. For specific information please contact your local vet.

Thank you for working with us to reduce the use of ‘red dot’ antibiotics

Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) continues to present a challenge to us all. As in humans, the overuse of antibiotics in animals can lead to surviving bacteria becoming resistant over time. Consequently, there is a continued international focus on prudent use of antibiotics in food-producing animals. Vets and farmers have been working together to ensure that antibiotics are used responsibly and prudently. In practice, this means using antibiotics as little as possible, and as much as needed, to manage animal health. It also means restricting the use of ‘red dot’ antibiotics in food-producing animals: they are those antibiotics that contain active ingredients needed in human medicine for hard-to-treat human diseases, such as tuberculosis and MRSA.

Anexa vets would like to thank our farmers in helping to reduce the use of ‘red dot’ antibiotics on farm. Together, we have reduced our use of these antibiotics by over 40% between 2014 and 2018. This is due to a joint commitment by vets and farmers to use more appropriate antibiotics to treat our animals, and by opting not to use antibiotics when there is no justification to do so.

Please help us to continue this positive trend, and ensure the effectiveness of antibiotics is preserved for humans, and animals, for as long as possible.